Magnum, 29 September 2016

Magnum in concert, 2005
Magnum are an English rock band. They were formed in Birmingham by Tony Clarkin (guitar, songwriter) and Bob Catley (vocals) in order to appear as the resident band at the Rum Runner nightclub in the city. Magnum have undergone several changes in personnel over the years; however, the core of Catley and Clarkin remain.
Magnum's most significant early success was Chase the Dragon in 1982, which reached number 17 in the UK Albums Chart. It included several songs that would become mainstays of the band's live set, notably "Soldier of the Line", "Sacred Hour" and "The Spirit". The band's 1986 album Vigilante represented a move towards the mainstream due to production by Queen drummer Roger Taylor and David Richards, who had recently worked together on A Kind of Magic. The band then achieved their commercial peak in 1988 when they entered the UK Top Ten for the first time with the album Wings of Heaven, which reached number five and featured three Top 40 singles, "Days of No Trust", "Start Talking Love" and "It Must Have Been Love". It was followed by Goodnight L.A., which was produced by Keith Olsen and reached number nine in the UK Album Chart in 1990. It produced another Top 40 single for the band, "Rockin' Chair".
In 1995, Clarkin announced Magnum's split; he later formed another band, with Catley and Al Barrow called Hard Rain. Magnum reformed in 2001 and have released a further eight studio albums since then. Their most recent album, Sacred Blood "Divine" Lies, was released in February 2016.